page_title: Regional Eurostar
section_title: Future
hierarchical_section_title: Regional Eurostar / Future
caption_attribution_description: English: map showing the proposed railway line linking the High Speed 1 and High Speed 2 lines in North London, UK, enabling the Regional Eurostar services This map was created from OpenStreetMap project data, collected by the community. This map may be incomplete, and may contain errors. Don't rely solely on it for navigation.
context_page_description: Regional Eurostar was the name given to plans to operate Eurostar train services from Paris and Brussels to locations in the United Kingdom beyond London. The services would have been run using a fleet of seven North of London, 14-coach British Rail Class 373/2 trainsets.
context_section_description: With the opening of High Speed 1 in November 2007, which has connections to both the East Coast Main Line and North London Line (for the West Coast Main Line) at St Pancras, there remains hope that the significantly improved journey times now available to potential Regional Eurostar services may make the service more viable. In addition, the maximum speed on the West Coast Main Line has been increased from 110 to 125 mph since the mid-2000s (though class 373s are at present limited by kinematic gauging constraints to 110 mph). Key pieces of infrastructure still belong to LCR via their subsidiary London & Continental Stations and Property (LCSP) such as the Manchester International Depot in Longsight.
  While there has not been any official announcement of plans to start Regional Eurostar services, during recent enquiries into capacity on the East Coast Main Line it has been mentioned that Eurostar (UK) still owns several track access rights and the rights to paths on both the East Coast and West Coast Main Lines, hinting at the possibility of services at some point in the future. But for the time being, at least, the nearest the UK has to Regional Eurostar services is the same-station connections now available at St Pancras from Midland cities along the Midland Main Line route, e.g., Leicester and Sheffield.
  Fresh plans have been proposed following announcements that a new high-speed line, High Speed Two (HS2), is to be constructed between London and Manchester and Leeds via Birmingham. The proposed route of HS2 into London will bring the line very close to the existing High Speed 1 (HS1) line which terminates at St Pancras station; at their closest points, the two high-speed lines will be only 0.4 miles (0.64 km) apart, and the Department for Transport (DfT) examined various proposals for connecting HS1 and HS2. A governmental "command paper" published in March 2010 proposed either a rapid transit link between HS1 and HS2 terminals, or a direct railway connection. Later announcements on 10 January 2012 confirmed that the first phase of the HS2 project was to include the construction of a single track link across North London between HS2 and HS1, partially in tunnels and partially over the existing North London Line, allowing for three trains per hour in both directions. DfT proposals in 2013 stated that this link would allow HS2 trains from the North of England to bypass London Euston and connect straight to HS1, enabling direct rail services to be run from Manchester, Leeds and Birmingham to Paris, Brussels and other continental European destinations.
  The proposed HS1-HS2 link was subject to some criticism and concerns were raised by Camden London Borough Council about the impact on housing, Camden Market and other local businesses from construction work of the link. Sir David Higgins, chairman of HS2 Ltd, recommended that the Camden railway link should be omitted from the parliamentary bill, stating that HS2 passengers from the North of England would easily be able to transfer from the HS2 terminal at Euston to St Pancras by London Underground, to continue their journey on HS1 to continental Europe. He also recommended that alternative plans should be drawn up to link the high-speed lines. At the second reading of the High Speed Rail Bill in April 2014, the link was omitted from the final proposals. Following this decision, London mayor Boris Johnson expressed the opinion that an HS1-HS2 link should instead be provided by boring a tunnel under Camden. 
  Since 2014 there have been no confirmed plans to connect HS2 to HS1, meaning that Regional Eurostar services are no longer being considered. The prospect of an HS1-HS2 link was revived in 2018 when a proposal was put forward by engineering consultancy Expedition Engineering for HS4Air, a 140-kilometre (87 mi) high-speed railway line that would create a link between the two lines across southern England. By running south of Greater London, it would also connect Heathrow and Gatwick Airports. This scheme remains at the proposal stage and has not been officially endorsed by 
caption: Map showing the proposed HS1-HS2 link across Camden, as proposed in 2010
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